What Do Falling Natural Gas Prices Mean for Renewables?

According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, average natural gas prices on the wholesale spot market dropped another 9% in 2011 , falling to the second-lowest price average since 2002. And the agency expects prices to fall substantially in 2012 due to record-high inventories of supply. In a few short years, domestic energy supply has undergone a major shift in favor of natural gas, challenging the economics of renewable energy technologies that compete directly with the resource. It’s not exactly the kind of shift that renewable energy proponents imagined. But it has helped keep electricity and heating prices low, while also shifting enthusiasm away from coal. Those are notable short-term victories — assuming renewables don’t get swept aside in the process. The picture is mixed. Although wind development has dropped off a cliff in states like Texas, in part bec...